


make it work

by ijd00



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: M/M, Project Runway AU, but they also fall in love, donghyuck and mark are fashion designers, they compete against each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:22:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24631486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ijd00/pseuds/ijd00
Summary: Donghyuck’s the youngest competitor on this season of Project Runway and determined to win, not letting anything stand in his way. He’s got youth, impeccable taste, and a killer aesthetic on his side. None of these designers are going to prevent him from proving himself to both the judges and the world, and winning himself that $100,000 cash prize.What he doesn't account for is Mark Lee.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 12
Kudos: 109





	make it work

  
**CHALLENGE ONE ⚬ COME AS YOU ARE**  


Donghyuck can’t believe he’s made it to New York. After four years of studying his ass off in fashion school to learn about fabrics, patterns, and fashion and another three of designing and trying to establish himself as a designer, he’s here. Competing on Season 25 of _Project Runway_ , and at the ripe old age of twenty four. This really is the chance of a lifetime.

Despite having been a fan and avid watcher of _Project Runway_ , Donghyuck had never seriously though about competing. One of his old roommates from college had tried out for the show and made it through a couple rounds of casting before being cut before production of the season began. Seeing the look of soul crushing disappointment on his roommate’s face had been enough to deter Donghyuck so he’d shoved all thoughts of applying to the back of his mind. Besides, as proud as he is of his designs, there are still a lot of things he’s insecure about.

And he knows what _Project Runway_ is like. The kind of conditions he’d be working under, the stress, the challenges. Everything. So yeah, he’d had zero intentions of applying until Ten had accidentally caught him looking at the application out of curiosity and immediately told him he would do great. Donghyuck had snorted before realizing he was serious, and then shut the conversation down any time Ten brought it up in the future. But Ten’s nothing if not persistent, so he’d applied to the show at two am, half drunk out of his mind, two weeks after first opening it. Honestly it’s a miracle that he got a call back at all.

But he did, and now he’s just landed in New York City, straight off a plane from Los Angeles. He’d grown up in South Korea, but upon realizing that fashion is what he wanted to do as an actual career, Donghyuck had (with the full support of his parents) moved himself halfway across the world and pursued his dreams. He’d met Ten in college, the older a dance major who had practically adopted him at first sight. Ten is like his best friend, brother, and father all wrapped up into one person. He runs a dance studio in Los Angeles and all of The Vision’s employees are like Donghyuck’s second family. He has their full support coming into this.

The taxi he’s in pulls up to the location Donghyuck was told to show up to by the producers and he takes a deep breath before thanking the driver and stepping outside. Someone takes his luggage from him and ushers him onto the patio, which is decorated with plants and flowy white drapes. There’s also a table with various fruits and beverages laid out. So far there’s only one other contestant there, quietly munching on one of the slices of watermelon. He turns around at the sound of Donghyuck’s footsteps, eyes wide as he holds out his hand in greeting, and Donghyuck can’t help but wonder what the hell Lee Taeyong’s younger brother is doing on _Project Runway_.

Here’s the thing. Everyone worth their salt in the fashion industry knows who Lee Taeyong is. He started out as a model at the ridiculously young age of fourteen, walked countless runways for all of the big name fashion brands in places like Milan, Paris, and New York, and then by the time he was twenty, had launched his own line. Donghyuck respects his aesthetic and his dedication to both high fashion and ready to wear. It’s a hard line for a lot of designers to walk, but Taeyong does a really admirable job of it. He’s not ashamed to admit that one of the first thing’s he’d bought himself after his first real paycheck was a jacket designed by Taeyong. It’s hanging in the closet of his apartment because it was definitely too formal to have brought with him, but it’s still one of his favorite items.

He’s also kind of one of Donghyuck’s personal heroes, right up there alongside Michael Jackson himself. Taeyong helped pave the way for South Korean (and Asian in general) designers in the United States, allowing people like himself to have a real shot in the American market. He’s famous famous. So the fact that his younger brother is standing here is very weird. There’s no way in hell Taeyong doesn’t have the necessary connections to get his brother ahead in the industry. The dude could also work for Taeyong if he really wanted to, but instead he’s standing in the same garden on a rooftop in Manhattan as Donghyuck. Weird.

“Hi,” he says shyly when all Donghyuck does is stare, “I’m Mark.”

Donghyuck shakes himself out of his stupor to take Mark’s hand, “Hi. I’m Donghyuck.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Mark says, “This is all a bit crazy isn’t it? That we actually made it this far in the process and got chosen to be here. I feel like I’m dreaming.”

“Me too,” Donghyuck nods, “Uh. First time in New York?”

“Nope. I’ve been here a couple times before even though I live in Vancouver.”

Mark pauses to take another bite of the watermelon before continuing, “I really like this city, but I don’t know if I could ever live here.”

Donghyuck shrugs, “Haven’t been here long enough to tell. I’m probably always going to be partial to Los Angeles though. Or maybe Jeju.”

Mark lights up at the mention of Jeju, but before he can say anything, more designers show up and the two get separated from each other, swept up in introducing themselves. He can tell that some of the other designers also recognize who Mark is, poorly disguised jealousy on their faces. Mark doesn’t seem too bothered by it though, and he glances up, catching Donghyuck in the middle of his staring. Face burning, Donghyuck turns away, but not before he sees Mark’s small smile.

*******

Heidi Klum is a little shorter in real life than Donghyuck thought she’d be, but she’s still every bit as gorgeous. Tim is also there, standing next to Heidi in one of his trademark suits. He listens attentively as she welcomes them to both New York and the 25th season of _Project Runway_ , telling the designers to get to know each other and mingle.

Donghyuck finds it a little suspicious that they aren’t getting a challenge right away, but he forces himself to relax and get used to being on camera for the foreseeable future. He hopes he can remember not to swear too much, otherwise he just knows that when the show airs his mother will have his head, even if she doesn’t really understand English. One of the designer wranglers shows them around the set, explaining how their one on one confessionals will go, as well as basic filming rules.

Finally, they’re allowed to go to their apartments and move in. Donghyuck is rooming with Mark, Aaron, and Cameron, and he quickly claims the bed next to Mark. Unpacking thankfully doesn’t take too long, and Donghyuck scrunches his nose when he sees Cameron lying on his bed, still wearing outside clothes. Mark catches the look on his face and snorts.

“My brother would have a heart attack if he saw Cameron right now,” Mark confesses.

“I’m having a heart attack,” Donghyuck replies, “I don’t get how people do that. Oh my god he’s still wearing his shoes too.”

Mark laughs and holds a hand over Donghyuck’s eyes, “Such a crime, cover your eyes for protection!”

“My hero,” Donghyuck pretends to swoon.

He and Mark share another laugh, and Donghyuck thinks he might have just made a friend. It’s a little surprising given that he’s only known Mark for a couple of hours, but in that short amount of time they’ve already bonded so much.

“You’re not bad Canada,” Donghyuck says once they’ve recovered from laughing, “Not bad at all.”

*******

It’s five am. There is no reason on this planet that Donghyuck should ever be awake at this time unless it’s because he was staying up and working on a design. He blinks and blearily makes out the form of Tim as he begins to usher them out of their beds and tells them to bring one of their sheets with them. Donghyuck groans, contemplating the merits of ignoring Tim and falling back to sleep until one of the designer wranglers comes in and directs them all out of the door, even as Donghyuck bemoans the fact that he didn’t get to wash his face.

Walking down Times Square in a grey t-shirt, the weird printed pants he got as a gift from Ten, and a bed sheet wasn’t exactly on his agenda for the day, but this is _Project Runway_. He supposes he’s going to have to get used to all of these twists. Mark is standing next to him with a bad case of bedhead and wearing orange checkered boxers.

“Nice boxers Canada,” Donghyuck whispers, smiling when Mark flushes.

He’d been so tired when he woke up that he hadn’t even noticed what Mark was wearing, but it’s kind of cute. Donghyuck snaps back to attention when they stop moving and Heidi announces that for their first challenge, they need to create a look out of their pajamas and the bedsheet they dragged with them. Oh boy.

Let the madness commence.

*******

Donghyuck takes a moment to mourn his pajama pants, wincing because he just knows that Ten will pretend to cry when he sees him deconstruct them. He’s got an idea, making a form fitting dress out of the pants and his shirt, then dyeing and using his sheet to make a little jacket over top. It’s a bold and ambitious plan for the first challenge, but Donghyuck is nothing if not a risk taker. The scrubs production gave them to wear as they work are an unfortunate shade of green, but he’d rather wear them than go naked.

He gets to work right away, cutting pattern paper and draping muslin over his form to get a better idea of what he wants before he starts cutting away at his limited fabric. To his right, one of the other designers (Ivy?) is already slicing into her fabric, but from the looks of it, she was sleeping in like three different shirts, so Donghyuck figures she feels more comfortable jumping straight in. Mark is to his left, humming as he messes with his design.

“The boxers huh?” Donghyuck asks, smiling when Mark jumps a little.

“Yeah,” he nods, “It was kind of the only interesting thing I had on, and I figured the judges would want to see something other than my sheet.”

“Fair enough,” Donghyuck says, “So you’re making a dress then?”

“That’s the plan.”

“I like it,” Donghyuck says, turning his head back to his pattern, “Make it work Canada.”

Mark laughs, “Make it work.”

*******

Safe. Donghyuck is both immensely relieved to have made it to the next round and also a little disappointed in himself for not scoring high enough to even have a shot at the win. He can tell some of the other designers feel the same way, if the vaguely disgruntled look on Elaina’s face is anything to go by. Mark is still on stage though, and Donghyuck hopes he ends up on top. He liked Mark’s dress, he really was able to turn the boxers and dyed bed sheet into something fashionable.

The six designers called out of line come back in, and Donghyuck’s vision narrows to Mark’s face, which is surprisingly neutral.

“So, who’s on top?” Mylene asks, “How was it?”

“I’m bottom,” Cameron announces depressed, “Me, Luke, and Gretchen. Lindsey, Daniel, and Mark were on top. They loved Mark’s.”

Mark flushes when the other designers start heaping on praises for his outfit, and Donghyuck offers him a smile of his own when he sinks into the couch next to him. Mark smiles back, leaning his head back as the bottom three talk about the feedback they received.

They’re called back about an hour later, and Donghyuck squeezes Mark’s hand in reassurance as he gets up to leave. Mark sends him a small smile and then he’s out of the door. Ten minutes later, he walks back in with a big smile.

“I won,” Mark says shyly, as if he’s trying to downplay his achievement.

Donghyuck leads the cheers for Mark, pulling him into a hug.

“Guess you really did make it work, huh Canada?”

Slowly, the rest of the designers trickle in one by one, until finally it’s Cameron coming in through the door. Luke follows a minute later, teary eyed but still grateful for the experience. They wave goodbye to Luke one more time, and then Tim sends him off to the workroom to clean up his space. Donghyuck leans back into the couch, stretching his neck out to relieve the sore muscle, beyond relieved to have not been the first to go home.

One down. Fourteen more to go.

**CHALLENGE TWO ⚬ RESORT WEAR OR BUST**

Resort wear. Ugh. Donghyuck has a bet with himself about how many designers are going to make swimsuits. It’s probably the ultimate cliche, and Donghyuck can practically hear Michael Kors crying at the thought. He also feels for the poor models, since he just knows that one of the designers isn’t going to be able to finish on time and one of them is going to have to go down the runway practically naked. For his look, Donghyuck is taking inspiration from his hometown of Jeju, thinking of all the different designs he saw while growing up. It might be seen as taking a risk, but that’s what Donghyuck is all about. Risks, and pushing the envelope, the very definition of fashion.

As he cuts his fabric, he wonders absentmindedly how he will be edited, what kind of person he will be made out to be. Hopefully a good person, but Donghyuck likes to think that even if he’s portrayed as an absolute bitch, his designs will still be able to speak for themselves. Of course, he’ll have no way of knowing until the season actually airs, which will be sometime later this year, long after filming has ended. Still, he hopes the editing team has mercy on him.

Donghyuck figures that the angle they’re going to have for Mark is pretty clear. The golden boy. It makes sense, Mark did win the first challenge, and he’s proving himself to be fully capable. The only thing it seems he can’t do is cook, which Donghyuck had found out when Mark had sheepishly asked him for help cooking some instant ramen.

It had been incredibly endearing, even if Donghyuck had disguised that feeling by laughing for about five minutes straight. Mark had just pouted at him the whole time and then thanked him with a small smile when he’d finally had his cooked noodles in front of him. He’d even offered to share, despite the fact that Donghyuck knows it probably cost a fortune to have the ramen shipped straight from Korea.

His heart had fluttered a little at that, and Donghyuck firmly told it to shut up.

“What are you smiling about?” Mark asks curiously as he passes by.

“Nothing to worry your pretty little head about Canada,” Donghyuck replies, turning back to his fabric and hoping that the camera can’t pick up his blush.

*******

His look takes him to the top three, and Donghyuck beams as the judges lavish praise upon his outfit. It feels good to be validated by these fashion icons, even if he doesn’t end up winning. As predicted, the eliminated designer (Cameron) is sent home for an ill fitting and rather uninspired swimsuit. It’s a bit sad to be losing a roommate, but Donghyuck’s glad that he survived another week, and made it to the top.

Thirteen more to go.

**CHALLENGE THREE ⚬ THERE IS NO ‘I’ IN TEAM**

Donghyuck almost laughs when they’re told what they have to do for this challenge. Paintball. Years of playing with Ten have turned him into a paintball champion and he’s confident that no matter what team he ends up on, they’ll win. As the winner of the last challenge, Josh is called up first to pick his teammate. He picks Aaron, which Donghyuck immediately notes is a terrible decision since it’s based on friendship, and not any actual design talent. No offense to Aaron.

Mark is chosen as the other team captain, and he thinks for less than a second before saying, “Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck grins, “Smart choice Canada. We’re gonna kick ass.”

The selection process continues in a similar fashion until the teams are assembled. Personally, Donghyuck thinks their team is much stronger design wise, but that could also be because he’s biased. It’s him, Mark, Elaina, Lindsey, Alexander, Gretchen, and Layana against Josh, Aaron, Daniel, Ivy, Amanda, Mylene, and Michelle.

They’re then directed to change into white jumpsuits and are given green bandanas to tie wherever they want before being driven to an open field. The task is pretty easy, capture the fabric, with both teams taking turns on defense and offense. They’re on offense first, which is good because Donghyuck wants to know how hard he’s going to have to go when it’s their turn to defend.

Unsurprisingly, he and Mark work the best together. They take turns being distractions while the other person stealthily steals the fabric. At the end of their run, they’ve captured all of the necessary fabric and Donghyuck is the cleanest of them all. He’s still absolutely covered in green, yellow, and blue paint, but on a far less intense level than Lindsey and Gretchen, who seem to have taken the brunt of the damage.

When it’s their turn on defense, Donghyuck grins, even though no one can see it under his helmet and fires. The other team doesn’t stand a chance.

*******

This is getting ridiculous. Donghyuck is roughly three seconds away from stabbing Alexander with his scissors when Mark gently touches his elbow, gesturing subtly at the cameras still pointed at them. Right. He takes a deep breath, in and out, before plastering on the fakest smile he can manage before explaining to Alexander that no, neon green is not a good color to make a fifties inspired dress out of. It’s not a good color to be making anything out of except highlighters.

“I know it’s frustrating,” Mark says once the camera is taken off of them, “But we’re a team. We have to work together.”

“I know,” Donghyuck sighs, “But Canada, he thought neon green would be a good color!”

“A fashion sin, truly,” Mark says solemnly, “Come on. Let’s go take a water break.”

Donghyuck nods and allows Mark to lead them into the designer lounge, sinking into the couch as Mark gets them both a cup of water. They drink in silence, which Donghyuck is grateful for. As much as he enjoys listening to Mark talk and responding in kind, sometimes all he needs is a moment to clear his head. When he’s done about twenty minutes later, he drags himself off the couch and reaches for Mark’s hand to pull him up as well.

“Let’s go,” he sighs, “I should probably go apologize for trying to rip Alexander’s head off.”

Mark smiles at him, “Probably. Let’s go make it work and kick the other team’s ass.”

*******

They win. And not only does his team win, but Donghyuck himself is the winner. He can’t help the wide smile that spreads over his face when it’s announced, and his whole team gathers around him in a celebratory hug. They’re dismissed back to the designer waiting room and he sinks happily into one of the couches.

“Congrats again,” Mark grins at him.

Donghyuck smiles back and then leans his head against the cushions. It’s validating to have won, especially so early in the competition. As the youngest designer in the competition, he knows that some of the other designers doubted him because of his age. It feels good to have proven himself and shown them exactly why he was chosen to compete.

That’s three down, and a victory to boot.

**CHALLENGE FOUR ⚬ MILLION DOLLAR RUNWAY**

Donghyuck isn’t exactly hurting for money (shout out to his parents), despite the fact that he’s very much got a starving artist thing going on out of a sense of kinship with Ten. But still, the sheer amount of money that all of the jewelry in the cases must cost is mind boggling. As the reigning challenge winner, Donghyuck is allowed to pick his jewelry first, and he makes the bold decision to work with a watch. It’s not typical, but nothing he does is.

Mark picks a set of ruby earrings with a matching necklace and smiles at Donghyuck over the case, leaning in. One of the security guards coughs at him and Mark startles, much to Donghyuck’s amusement.

“Good going Canada,” he whispers, “Definitely make the stacked security guards think you’re going to steal the jewels.”

“Oops,” Mark says sheepishly, “My bad.”

Donghyuck shakes his head fondly at him, turning his head back to his sketchbook, where a dress with a very intricate neckline is taking shape. He can afford to do that because his jewelry is just a watch, which frees his model’s neck up. It’s going to come together very nicely, and as he runs around Mood, looking for the perfect fabric, he can already imagine the feeling of a second win.

*******

Safe again. It’s a bit disappointing not to win again (or even be on top), but it’s fine. Donghyuck tries not to let the disappointment of not winning get to him, even though he was sure he’d had it in the bag. He proved himself to be a threat last week, he doesn’t need to constantly be on top. As much as his ego would like that. Mark helps pass the time since this time, they’re both waiting in the designer lounge. They talk quietly about who they think is going to be on top, who’s going to be on the bottom, and then they talk about pretty much anything else.

Gretchen ends up with the win and Layana is sent home, which Mark is kind of bummed about because they’d gotten closer during the paintball challenge, but Donghyuck is more relieved to have made it another week and feels a new desire to win again.

Four down.

**CHALLENGE FIVE ⚬ THE OLYMPIANS**

“This week, your challenge is to create a high fashion look inspired by one of the twelve Olympians,” Heidi announces.

Donghyuck knows approximately one thing about Greek mythology, and it’s that Zeus is the ultimate fuck boy. He also learned this from one of Ten’s drunken ramblings at two in the morning, so he’s not entirely sure of the validity of the statement. He just hopes they get some kind of information on their chosen Olympian so that he doesn’t have to hastily look it up in the bathroom.

Since she won last week, Gretchen is allowed to pick first (she picks Demeter), and then the twist is that she gets to assign the rest of the designers their god or goddess. Donghyuck doesn’t even care, he’ll take whoever he gets and roll with it. Mark gets Artemis, and he actually looks pretty pleased. A faint voice that sounds suspiciously like drunk Ten informs him that she’s the goddess of the moon and an eternal huntress. Maybe Mark will run with that idea, give her an updated hunting outfit.

“As for Donghyuck,” Gretchen muses, causing him to snap back to attention, “Apollo.”

*******

The sun god. And poetry. And prophecy. And plagues. And a whole bunch of other things. His godly roles were typed neatly on a piece of paper left for Donghyuck on his work station, along with a couple of pictures for reference. Apollo must have been a very busy dude. Donghyuck hums as he thinks of designs, walking over to where Mark is sketching.

“Hey,” Mark greets, finishing a line before looking up.

“I know our gods are twins,” Donghyuck says, “Uh, do you think it would be weird if we worked with that? Or like, incorporated some kind of similar element into our designs.”

Mark frowns, “Is that against the rules? I’m more than down to do it otherwise since I think it could be cool, but I don’t want it to be seen as collaborating on what isn’t a team challenge.”

Oh right. Donghyuck hadn’t considered that. After a very quick check in with a producer about the rules, they’re given the all clear so long as they don’t blatantly have the same design. The element they agree to share is a ribbon, one that runs around the garments. They’re both going to have their own take, but there will be a ribbon present in both. It’s meant to symbolize the connection between the two, their status as twins. It’s a risk for sure, but Donghyuck likes taking them.

Besides, their challenge is to embody their chosen Olympian in whatever manner they see fit, highlighting the important aspects of their character. And Apollo is a twin. His connection with his twin sister is a large part of his origin story, and a couple other myths. He learns all of this of course, from Mark.

Rather adorably, Mark is apparently a Greek mythology nerd (he confirms that Zeus is in fact a fuck boy and then provides about twenty different examples), who happily tells Donghyuck a lot of the myths in detail. It makes for good background noise as he cuts his patterns out, occasionally asking questions so Mark knows that he’s actually listening. This pattern is going to be a bitch, and Donghyuck needs all the distraction he can get.

“By the way,” Mark says, “Just let me know when you’re done hearing me talk about mythology. I know I can get a little too excited about this kind of stuff.”

“I like it,” Donghyuck says, waving his scissors around airily, “You’re a dork, but it’s kind of cute.”

Mark immediately flushes and turns back his form, where he has his muslin draped and Donghyuck smiles to himself. Figures that Mark is the type of person to stop functioning after someone calls him cute. He doesn’t have to know that Donghyuck will absolutely abuse this knowledge and use it against him. Laughing to himself, Donghyuck turns back to his cutting, already mentally preparing himself for the eight million more pieces he has.

*******

Aaron gets sent home for what is truly an eyesore (seriously, Aphrodite is the goddess of love but that didn’t mean he was limited to hot pink as his only color). Donghyuck is on the bottom though, and it doesn't feel good at all.

He’s on the top of the bottom at least, but it still sucks. The judges told him his fabric looked cheap (cheap? let Donghyuck be the first to say that his fabric was anything but) and that the design was uninspired. Boring. His clothes have been called a lot of things, but boring has never been one of them. It had taken a lot not to break down on the runway. Mark was safe, and that night he pulls him into a tight hug, reassuring him that he loved the look.

“They called it boring,” Donghyuck whispers into his neck, “My clothes, boring!”

“Nothing you do is boring,” Mark says, “I loved it. They’re just blind.”

“I took a risk and it only half worked,” Donghyuck sighs, “I’ll be fine tomorrow. I just need to sleep it off.”

Mark smiles at him, “If you need someone though, I’m here for you.”

“I know,” Donghyuck says, and before Mark disappears into the bathroom, he adds, “Mark! Thank you.”

**CHALLENGE SIX ⚬ HAVING A SWEET TIME**

“What the hell am I supposed to do with these?” Donghyuck moans as he clutches the candy in his hand.

The unconventional challenge had come a bit later in the season than he’d been expecting, and his strategy upon being presented with Dylan’s Candy Bar had been to grab anything he thought he could work with in the future and then designing later. This seems to be proving to be an interesting strategy because while he grabbed interesting things (mostly rock candy), he still has no idea what the hell to do with any of it. His best idea right now is to just smash the candy with a hammer and hope that it turns out okay.

Next to him, Mark is humming as he glues jelly beans onto his dress form. They’re all separated by color in various bowls spread around him. Donghyuck watches him for a couple of minutes and realizes that he’s gluing them to look like beads, and is blown away by Mark’s creativity.

He leans over and steals one of the jelly beans from a white bowl, popping it into his mouth. Watermelon.

Mark looks at him and laughs, “Hey! No sabotage!”

“You’re not even using these,” Donghyuck snorts as he takes another, “I think you just bought them so you could eat them. Ooh this one is cherry.”

“They’re one of my brother’s favorite candies,” Mark admits, “These and gummy bears. He got me hooked.”

“Cute,” Donghyuck smiles, “Hey, do you think that if I just start hammering the shit out of my candy anyone will get mad at the noise?”

Mark shrugs, “Maybe? But like, Daniel is doing some hammering too so they can’t get mad at just you. Besides, they’re just going to have to deal with it, right? You can’t not go ahead with your design because you’re afraid of being too loud. That’s like, half your brand.”

Donghyuck laughs, “Wow okay Canada, I see you. But you’re right. I’m going to start hammering now. Sorry to your eardrums, and your eardrums only.”

Mark shakes his head fondly and pours some of his jelly beans into a cup, “Here. In case you get snacky.”

Grinning, he takes the cup and then gets to work.

*******

He and Mark both end up in the top, and it feels good to be there again after the disaster that was last week. Mark is declared the winner, and Donghyuck understands why one hundred percent. From a distance, it’s impossible to tell that Mark’s dress was made from jelly beans, and the pattern he made using different shades of blue beans is really beautiful.

Once they’re back in the apartment and the film crew has left them alone for the night, Mark shyly hands over a small metal container. The top has a Dylan’s Candy Bar label, and Donghyuck tilts his head because he doesn’t remember ever seeing this on Mark’s work station. He opens it to reveal a bunch of little pieces of black licorice.

“It’s not much,” Mark says sheepishly, “But I remember you said you liked them because it reminds you of home.”

Donghyuck mentioned this to Mark exactly once, at what must have been near two in the morning. He’d mentioned that growing up, he’d started eating black licorice because it was his siblings’ least favorite candy and as any good older brother would, he’d taken one for the team and eaten it, not wanting to throw the candy out. Eventually it had grown on him, and every time Donghyuck eats some, he’s reminded of Halloweens spent with his family. The fact that Mark remembered touches Donghyuck’s heart and after carefully putting the container down, he throws himself at Mark, pulling him into a hug.

“Thanks Canada,” he whispers, “Don’t tell anyone I said this, but you’re the best.”

Mark laughs and rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, “It was nothing.”

It is something, because Mark clearly took the time out of gathering materials for his dress to carefully pack the licorice and place it aside, but upon seeing the tips of Mark’s ears turning red in embarrassment, Donghyuck simply shakes his head and smiles.

**CHALLENGE SEVEN ⚬ AND I SET FASHION TO THE RAIN**

The rainway. Okay. Sure. Why not? Donghyuck loves the rain almost as much as he loves the sun, loves the smell of wet grass, the sound of the sky opening up. He also loves his umbrella (because as much as he loves the aesthetic of the rain, he hates being wet), and so that’s where he’s going to take his inspiration from. It’s definitely a risk, but they asked for an avant garde look this challenge, and Donghyuck isn’t about to disappoint.

“What are you thinking for this challenge?” he asks Mark as they walk to Mood, “It’s a lot of pressure don’t you think?”

Mark nods absentmindedly, “Definitely a lot to think about. I have a crazy idea and I really hope it works.”

*******

Mark is making a white dress. Sure it’s pretty, but if that’s his crazy idea, then Donghyuck needs to have a serious chat with him about his definition of crazy.

“Don’t worry,” Mark reassures him over his salad bowl, “I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve.”

“Whatever you say Canada,” Donghyuck says, “Whatever you say.”

*******

Donghyuck bids goodbye to his model, Serina, with a wave, confident that she’s going to strut her stuff and help him secure the win. One of the many designer wranglers moves them out from backstage and out to where the runway is. They’re ushered into their stools as usual, watching the judges come in and mill around as they get ready to start recording, and Donghyuck hears Mark suck in a deep breath next to him. Donghyuck follows his gaze and realizes why Mark’s face has suddenly gone so pale. Oh. The guest judge is none other than Lee Taeyong himself.

For a split second, he wonders if that’s even morally right. To have Taeyong judge his own brother’s work and not bring into question his objectiveness. Donghyuck knows the two of them are close, and even if he hadn’t watched thousands of interviews with Taeyong where the designer talks about how much he loves his younger brother, he’d know from all the time Mark spends on the phone with him. They’re all allowed to make one phone call a week, and Donghyuck usually uses it on Ten or his parents on the rare occasion that the phone call lines up with his parents’ sleep schedule. Mark always uses it to call his brother.

“Hey,” Donghyuck whispers, “Are you going to be okay?”

Mark nods, eyes not leaving his brother as Taeyong looks over and waves, flashing a quick smile. He’s even prettier in real life, and Donghyuck has to remind himself to breathe and not be creepy. To purposefully not think about how Taeyong was the reason for his gay awakening, and all the nights he and Ten used to spend talking about how godlike the man is. He’s best friends with Taeyong’s younger brother now, he can’t be super creepy.

The show begins, and Donghyuck could not be more proud of the way Serina looks as she comes down the runway, water pouring down from the ceiling. He’s so proud of his umbrella dress, of the way it falls and the way it moves. It screams avant garde and it screams innovation. The win is almost certainly in the bag, except for one thing. Mark.

Mark’s model comes out in her white dress, and Donghyuck sees the way all of the judges’ eyebrows scrunch together in confusion. Donghyuck squeezes Mark’s hand as she makes her way off of the platform and onto the runway. As the model walks under the pouring rain, the dress transforms, yellow and pink blooming as the dye Mark painstakingly added into the stitching gets wet.

Mark practically cries with relief and Donghyuck smiles. It’s really a wow moment on the runway, and he’s got to hand it to him. That dress really was a crazy idea.

*******

Once the cameras stop rolling and they’re allowed to head back to the apartments, Mark immediately stands up and asks one of the crew members if he can talk to his brother. They hesitate before repeating the question into their headset, nodding at the response they get.

“Yeah,” they say, “He’s coming now.”

Sure enough, a couple seconds later, Lee Taeyong in the flesh rounds the corner, and sweeps his younger brother up in a big hug. Donghyuck moves to leave, give them some privacy, but Mark’s grip on his wrist keeps him firmly in place. Donghyuck pointedly ignores the way he can see both of them are tearing up, instead averting his eyes to the ceiling. Wow. It’s white.

“You did so good! Congrats on the win!” Taeyong grins, “Seriously, that was so creative how you sewed the dye into the fabric. Where did you get that idea?”

Mark smiles sheepishly, “Do you remember that time you sent Jaehyun hyung to buy you fabric dye when it was raining and he decided it would be a good idea to just shove the packet under his white shirt because it had ripped?”

Taeyong laughs, “Yes! The dye was red and so it looked like he had gotten shot by the time he made it back. I should have known.”

“Oh! This is Donghyuck,” Mark introduces him, “He’s my best friend here. Maybe best friend in general.”

“It’s nice to meet you officially, congrats on the win as well!” Taeyong says with a smile as he offers his hand, and Donghyuck has to remind himself to breathe.

He’s totally cool. It’s totally fine that this god of a man is in front of him, a mere mortal.

“Hi,” Donghyuck squeaks as he shakes Taeyong’s hand, praying his own isn’t too clammy, “It’s nice to meet you too.”

“Mark talks about you a lot,” Taeyong says, “It’s nice to finally put a face to the name.”

“Does he?” Donghyuck asks, shooting Mark a teasing smile, glad to be a little bit back in familiar teasing territory.

“Yeah,” Taeyong answers, “Always goes on and on about you, and how you won’t stop calling him “Canada”.”

Donghyuck smiles sheepishly, “Ah, yeah.”

Taeyong laughs and Mark smiles at his brother with admiration clear in his eyes. Donghyuck is glad that Mark is able to have this time with family, since he knows from late nights talking that Mark hasn’t seen Taeyong in almost a year because of conflicting schedules, and he hasn’t seen their parents in longer.

“I’ll leave you two alone for now,” Donghyuck says, “I’ll see you later Mark. Um, it was really nice meeting you Mr. Lee.”

“Just Taeyong is fine,” Taeyong smiles at him, “It was nice to meet you too.”

“Bye Hyuck,” Mark grins at him.

The last thing that Donghyuck hears as he leaves the brothers alone is Mark’s laughter, and the sound of it alone is enough to bring out a smile of his own.

**CHALLENGE EIGHT ⚬ MAKEUP OR BREAK UP**

Makeup is his jam. Ever since he’s had access to the internet, Donghyuck’s loved to experiment with makeup. He’d been self conscious about it at first, but when he moved to Los Angeles, Ten told him to stick it to the haters and embrace what he loved. Having someone as confident as Ten around him definitely helped, and soon Donghyuck was wearing makeup proudly.

This challenge isn’t really about being able to do makeup, but it does involve being able to visualize the whole look and what the whole look is going to be. Plus, it’s for Heidi’s new line of makeup, the next part of her ever growing brand expansion. The palette he picked was smokey and Donghyuck already knows exactly what he’s going to design.

“I like that design a lot,” Mark says from over his shoulder, “It’s so edgy.”

Donghyuck grins, “Thank you. That’s what I’m going for.”

The design is a warrior princess villain look that Donghyuck is confident will absolutely blow the socks off of the judges. The winner of this challenge’s look is going to be used in the ad campaign, and Donghyuck desperately wants to win this. The kind of exposure that comes with being associated with Heidi Kulm’s brand is almost second to none, and certainly has the power to change his life. He finishes his sketch and then stands up, ready to go shopping for fabric.

*******

“Hey Canada,” Donghyuck calls, “Do you think a headpiece would be too much?”

Mark finishes hand stitching some lace to his garment before coming over, tilting his head in contemplation, “What kind?”

“Something really close to the head,” Donghyuck says as he shows Mark the quick sketch he’d drawn a couple of minutes ago, “Like this.”

Mark studies the drawing and then the outfit Donghyuck has on the form, eyes flitting back and forth between the two.

“I don’t think it would be too much,” he says finally, “Just make sure the makeup can still be seen, you know?”

Donghyuck nods, “Of course. Thank you.”

He smiles at Mark, who smiles back before returning to his work station, humming a song under his breath. Donghyuck recognizes it as an old SHINee song, singing along with Mark under his breath as he starts working on the headpiece. Mark looks up at him in surprise before continuing to hum.

They continue the rest of the work day like that, Mark humming new songs and Donghyuck chiming in when he recognizes them. It’s nice.

*******

He wins. He almost falls over, right there on the runway, a wide smile breaking out on his face. Heidi says something else before he’s walking off stage, where a producer immediately hands him papers that have more details regarding the photoshoot.

After they’re done filming for the day and another designer has been sent home, Serina finds him and hugs him tightly, beyond excited to be a part of the shoot. It’s scheduled to be in a couple of days, during one of the days that they usually film their one on one confessionals. It’s a big step towards becoming a more recognized designer and of all the challenges he could have won so far, Donghyuck is most proud to have won this one.

**CHALLENGE NINE ⚬ WHAT WOMEN WANT**

Ah the real women challenge. Despite a fundamental disagreement with the name of the challenge (what woman isn’t real?), Donghyuck is actually looking forward to being able to work with a client. He loves making people happy, and this is a sure way to do so. His client is a lovely young woman by the name of Hannah who has no time to really shop for proper clothes due to her hectic schedule as a nurse raising two young children.

“I honestly only wear scrubs most of the time,” Hannah admits, “And when I’m not, it’s pajamas. I never have the time to wear anything nice.”

“I can definitely help you with that,” Donghyuck promises, “What kind of event or outfit do you have in mind?”

“A date night?” Hannah says, “Something I can wear to a fancy restaurant, but not like, the Met Gala.”

Donghyuck hums, “How do you feel about a jumpsuit?”

Hannah’s eyes light up, “I love that idea. But can I request that it be easy to get on and off? It is such a pain in the butt to try and pee in one of those.”

Laughing, Donghyuck nods and gets set to work, sketching out a couple of different designs and making sure that they’re on the same page fabric and color wise. By the time Hannah leaves, he’s confident in both his working relationship with her and what he’s going to make. Looking around the workroom, he might be one of the only ones. Even Mark is looking a little stressed.

“What’s wrong Canada?” he asks, sliding over and peering at Mark’s sketchbook.

“My client is nice,” Mark sighs, “But she’s very specific. Knows exactly what she wants, but also wants about a million things at once.”

Donghyuck snorts when he sees the eight million little notes Mark seems to have jotted down, “She knows that some of this just isn’t practical right?”

“You try telling her that,” Mark says, “I want to make her happy and incorporate all of these elements, but like you said. Half of this stuff just doesn’t work together.”

“You can do this,” Donghyuck reassures, “Trust your gut.”

Mark sighs tiredly, “Thanks Hyuck.”

*******

Hannah is absolutely thrilled with her jumpsuit, “Thank you, thank you, thank you! Honestly, this is the nicest thing I think I’ve ever owned.”

Donghyuck smiles widely, “I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it,” Hannah declares, “If I could, I’d wear this forever.”

This is a good sign. Even if the judges absolutely rip him a new one for his design, Donghyuck made his client happy, and this week, that’s all that matters. Besides, if he lands on the bottom, Hannah loving her outfit might help convince the judges to not eliminate him.

He glances over to where Mark is with his client (Annalise) and is relieved to see that she actually looks happy. They both get a minute’s respite while Hannah and Annalise are getting hair and makeup done and Donghyuck smiles at Mark.

“I see your gut came through for you.”

“Yeah,” Mark nods, “Honestly I’m just glad she likes the suit. It was a bit of a risk, but I’m glad it paid off.”

“Me too,” Donghyuck grins, “I’d hate to see you to get eliminated.”

“Same,” Mark says before fumbling, “I mean, I’d hate to see you get eliminated too, not that I’d hate to see myself eliminated even though it would kind of suck.”

Donghyuck laughs, “I know what you meant Canada, it’s fine. Come on, let’s go get our clients.”

*******

Hannah embraces him in a hug as soon as he steps off the runway, “Congrats! I knew you’d win!”

Donghyuck lets out a happy laugh, hugging her back, “Thank you! Couldn’t have done it without you though. Please wear the jumpsuit well!”

“I will,” Hannah promises, “I hope you win. I’ve been watching Project Runway for a long time and I seriously think you’re its best designer.”

“Thank you,” Donghyuck says sincerely, “I’m going to do my best to make it to the finale and win.”

“You’ve got this in the bag,” Hannah says, giving him one final hug before the designer wranglers separate them.

He feels good.

**CHALLENGE TEN ⚬ PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE**

“A pop up shop?” Donghyuck asks, “What?”

That’s not even the main challenge, it’s just a setup for how they’re supposed to get the money they need in order to purchase fabric from Mood. It’s probably the dumbest challenge they’ve had to deal with, but at this point in the competition Donghyuck just sighs and gets to work.

“It’s kind of dumb isn’t it?” Mark smiles as he dresses one of his mannequins.

They’re not selling their own designs, but instead trying to sell the same clothes and using their own creativity to style mannequins and design the store. He feels more like a retail manager than a fashion designer. The “money” they get from sales is then going to be turned into actual cash, which they can then use to create their designs, which is supposed to be an outfit that summarizes their brand up.

“KInd of is an understatement,” Donghyuck grumbles, wrestling with getting his mannequin’s arm through a shirt sleeve.

“The arms detach for a reason,” Mark points out amused.

“Shut up Canada,” Donghyuck says, cheeks burning, “I knew that.”

*******

The problem with creating an outfit that represents his brand is that Donghyuck doesn't really have one. Sure Ten buys his stuff on occasion (and bullies his employees into buying Donghyuck’s stuff as well) but like, he doesn’t have a solid brand. He does have a rather solid aesthetic though, so he’s got a couple things to work with, and by the end of the work day, he’s got something.

“This is killing me,” Donghyuck sighs as he sprawls out on the couch of the apartment.

Mark snorts as he sidles over to him, “You good?”

“This challenge is the worst,” Donghyuck whines, “I barely have a brand and I have to somehow encapsulate its essence in one outfit?”

“So pretend you’re launching a brand,” Mark suggests, “And this is your opening piece. The one outfit you have that you’re confident screams who you are as a designer.”

Donghyuck pauses, “That’s actually really useful advice. Thanks Canada.”

“Of course,” Mark grins, “Now start designing.”

*******

Elaina ends up winning, but Donghyuck is just happy that the judges liked his look. It really does represent him as a designer, and he’s proud of it. Mark’s advice had proven to be seriously useful, and with his words in mind, he’d created something that he’d be proud to sell and have it represent his nonexistent label.

They’re almost at the end, and Donghyuck can practically taste it. Two challenges to go.

**CHALLENGE ELEVEN ⚬ THERE’S A PATTERN HERE**

This was the week Donghyuck was waiting for. The week where the challenge is to make your own print, to tell a story through the fabric. The first time he’d seen this challenge, Donghyuck had known that he wanted to try it. Unfortunately, manufacturing your own print is expensive as hell and so he’d never had the proper opportunity to try. But now that he has the chance, Donghyuck isn’t going to waste it.

There are a couple of designs he plays with. One is a bunch of suns in varying sizes, but Mark quietly points out that from a distance, they kind of look like polka dots, which wasn’t really the vibe Donghyuck was going for. Another idea is more geometric, crisscrossing lines that he ultimately scratches for being too busy. He wishes Ten were here to help him. Donghyuck amuses himself by drawing a couple of tens, messing around with the placement.

“Are those tens?” Mark asks, looking up from his tablet, “Like your friend?”

“Yeah,” Donghyuck laughs, “I don’t really know what I want my design to be, can you tell? Ten is really good with these kinds of things though, so I started messing around with his name.”

Mark tilts his head, “I kind of like it. It’s geometric.”

Donghyuck hums in consideration, “What are you going with? A maple leaf?”

“No,” Mark shakes his head, “Maple leaves look kind of stupid in a print. My print is more conceptual, you know?”

Mark’s print is pretty. It’s two interlocked symbols, carefully woven together in such an intricate pattern that Donghyuck can’t tell where one begins and the other ends.

“It’s me and Taeyong hyung,” Mark explains, “Growing up, we had each other to rely on and he’s been a really big support system for me. So this is my way of saying thank you to him and paying tribute to our relationship.”

“It’s really nice,” Donghyuck says, “Seriously, and so meaningful too.”

Mark smiles softly at him and oh. Now is not the time for feelings.

*******

“Hey Mark?” Donghyuck calls quietly, not sure if Mark’s sleeping yet.

Mark makes some kind of grunting noise, which Donghyuck takes to mean that he’s awake. He turns the light that’s in between their beds on and Mark groans, immediately covering his eyes.

“What?” he asks.

“I’m really glad that you’re my friend,” Donghyuck admits quietly, “I don’t know what I’d have done without you by my side.”

Mark’s grumpy expression melts into one that can be described as fond as he replies, “Me too. I really didn’t know what to expect when I first came here, but I’m glad it was you.”

“Do you think that I’m going to make it to fashion week?”

This is the first real time that Donghyuck has expressed his insecurities to Mark, and he hopes he’s not let down. He trusts Mark though, and even though his silence is killing him, Donghyuck waits.

Finally, Mark says, “Yes. I really do. Hyuck, you’re one of the greatest designers I know. You have such a unique point of view and I admire you so, so much. If the judges don’t see that, then it’s because they’re blind.”

“Really?” Donghyuck sniffs, “You mean that?”

“With my whole heart,” Mark says softly, and then he lifts the covers on his bed.

His face burns when he realizes what Mark is doing, and Donghyuck slides out of his own bed to climb in next to Mark. Mark pulls him in close and they just stare at each other, memorizing the details of their faces.

“You can do this,” Mark whispers, “I wish you saw yourself the way I see you.”

Donghyuck flushes and buries his face in Mark’s chest. It’s cramped since all of the beds in the suite are twin sized, but Donghyuck would rather amputate his own foot than leave. One of Mark’s hands gently strokes the back of his head, and that’s how he falls asleep. Curled up under Mark’s sheets, in Mark’s bed, and in Mark’s tender hold.

*******

“They’re tens,” Donghyuck explains, “Because when I first came to America, the first friend I made is named Ten, and so this is in honor of him. He’s going to kill me when he sees this, but our friendship really means a lot to me and he really helped me adjust to Los Angeles.”

“The pattern is very well executed,” Michael comments, “You know, sometimes geometric prints work and sometimes they don’t. I”m glad yours did.”

Next to him, Nina nods, “And your pants just fit so well. Honestly, really well done this week Donghyuck. I’m proud of you.”

Donghyuck beams and Serina squeezes his hand. The praise this week in particular means more to him than he can articulate. This challenge is so personal to him that having the judges like it means the world to him. Especially this late in the competition, where you’re either on the top or the bottom. He desperately wants to make it to fashion week, and he wants to go into it strong. This is a positive sign.

Mark ends up with the win. He looks two seconds away from crying on the runway, and the moment he makes it back to the designer lounge he does. Donghyuck rubs soothing circles into his back and Mark just cries harder into his shoulder.

“It’s okay Canada,” he whispers, “It’s okay.”

**CHALLENGE TWELVE ⚬ WHO YOU ARE**

“Who am I?” Lindsey muses, “I didn’t really expect this week to give me an existential crisis but here we are I guess.”

Donghyuck groans next to her and Mark laughs. This is pretty much the third challenge they’ve had in a row that deals with something personal. They practically already did this challenge, but this time it’s supposed to be inspired by their hometown. It’s getting down to the wire now and he’s tired. Designing is what Donghyuck loves, but the competition is even more intense than what it seems on television. He’d cried a little about it last night in the shower so that Mark couldn’t hear him. Mark pats his hand reassuringly and Donghyuck smiles back at him.

“What are you thinking Canada?” Donghyuck asks.

The easy smile falls a little off of Mark’s face and Donghyuck almost regrets asking.

“I don’t know,” Mark admits quietly, “It’s hard working in an industry where your brother is famous and people think you only got to where you are because of him. And like, I love Taeyong hyung more than probably anyone else in this world, but to most people I’m just his younger brother.”

Donghyuck frowns, “Don’t you dare reduce yourself to that. You’re your own person. Anyone who only sees you as his younger brother clearly hasn’t taken the time to get to know you, which is a damn shame.”

“Thanks Hyuck,” Mark says, “It’s just, this challenge really has me thinking since it’s supposed to be inspired by our hometowns you know?”

“I understand,” Donghyuck says, because he does, “Guess this is _Project Runway’s_ way of giving us all existential crises like Lindsey said, huh?”

Mark smiles faintly, “I guess so. Tell me about Jeju?”

Donghyuck knows that this is Mark’s way of distracting himself from thinking about his brother, but he doesn't call him out on it. Instead, he launches into stories of his childhood, filled with happiness, and the sun.

*******

The reality of the situation is this. Despite what he might want, he and Mark can’t both win. There is of course, the distinct possibility that neither he nor Mark will win, or that one of them will be eliminated this challenge, but Donghyuck is confident that they’ll both make it. That in the end, it will come down to one of them winning.

And don’t get him wrong, Donghyuck is immensely grateful for his time on Project Runway, but damn does he want to win. He’s made it this far, and now that he’s this close, his desire to win has only increased.

It’s just, every time he thinks about winning, he sees Mark’s sad face. Ever since the night that they slept together in Mark’s bed, something had changed. It was unspoken, but Donghyuck knows that they both know of the other’s feelings. It’s written in the looks they give each other, the gentle caresses as they pass each other in the workroom. In the way they’ve been sleeping in the same bed ever since the first time (they pushed their beds together so they’d fit more comfortably).

They haven’t addressed it because Donghyuck is pretty sure they’d have to report it to the producers, and he doesn’t want them to ruin his relationship with Mark before it officially begins. It’s hard. Hard in a different way than having to sew a whole garment in six hours. It’s hard because he really does like Mark, and he can’t do anything about it until after filming is done.

“Hey,” Mark calls, stepping out of the bathroom, “Come on, we gotta go before they send one of the producers up here.”

Right. It’s judgement day. His thoughts can wait another day.

*******

The second he walks back into the designer’s lounge, he screams into one of the pillows. Mark chuckles from where he’s sitting on the couch.

“I did the same thing,” he admits, “This feels surreal.”

Donghyuck lifts his head up from the pillow and sinks into Mark’s open arms, “I can’t believe this.”

“We’re going to fashion week,” Mark says softly.

“We’re going to fashion week,” Donghyuck repeats, the grin on his face growing wider.

Not even Elaina’s elimination can get rid of the smile on his face, and after Heidi has explained the parameters set forth for their collections, he and Mark walk back to their shared room. Their flights have been booked and are set to leave in two days so that they can still film their one on one confessionals.

It’s nice to be able to sink into bed, knowing that he’s made it to fashion week. Holy shit, he’s really going to be presenting a collection at New York fashion week. This is a dream come true. Mark comes over a few minutes later, shyly holding out a container of ice cream and two spoons.

Donghyuck takes one with a big grin, digging in and leaning his head against Mark’s shoulder, happy to just be spending time with him. He and Mark have gone on this journey together, spent almost every step of the way with each other. The fact that both of them made it delights him, and romantic feelings aside, Donghyuck’s glad that he’s coming out of this show with such a true friend.

*******

“Hey Hyuck,” Mark calls, right before he leaves, “We can do this. Good luck, and make it work.”

“Make it work Canada.”

**CHALLENGE THIRTEEN ⚬ COLLECTION CREATION**

The first thing Donghyuck does upon coming back to his apartment is collapse onto his couch and scream. After that, he pulls himself together and starts designing. Ten drops by every now and then to make sure that he’s still breathing, and as much as Donghyuck likes to make fun of him, he’s very grateful.

“I knew you’d make it,” Ten says proudly the first week he’s back, “My precious little devil, all grown up.”

“Thanks Ten,” Donghyuck says, trying not to choke up, “Your support really meant a lot to me.”

Ten smiles at him and Donghyuck realizes that Ten is also on the brink of tears.

“Shut up I’m just feeling more emotional today,” Ten sniffs, pulling Donghyuck into a hug.

He missed this, having someone to just hold, being held by someone who loves him. Because for as much shit as they give each other, they do love each other. Ten is his family. And it’s so relieving to have his support, to know that he’s not alone.

“You can do this,” Ten whispers, “Go out there and kick designer ass.”

*******

All in all, there are ten looks. Each one has a piece of Donghyuck’s soul sewn into it, the fourth look more literally than the others (his finger still hurts from where he sewed over it in one of his three am frenzies). It’s definitely him, and Tim had seemed to love it. Or at least, love the pieces that he had ready when he came to visit. They’d had lunch together in Ten’s apartment, some Thai food that Ten had cooked after calling his mom for the recipe.

Then Tim had left and it was back to him and Ten. He’d made a couple of edits based on Tim’s commentary, and then the only thing left was for him and Ten to pack it all up, get it ready to be shipped out to New York City.

“Hyung,” Donghyuck says, and that more than anything catches Ten’s attention because Donghyuck never calls him that unless it’s serious, “I don’t know what to name my collection.”

Ten hums, looking around the room at all of the pieces of Donghyuck’s soul spread out. The color scheme he’d chosen is yellow, white, and gold, and it kind of looks like everything has exploded. The bright yet minimalistic sun concept definitely came through, and Donghyuck is really proud of his work despite how much both his brain and body aches.

“I like the sun theme you’ve got going on. What was it that you said your parents used to call you?” Ten finally asks, “Haechan?”

“Oh my god, you’re a genius!”

“Say that again,” Ten demands, “I wasn’t recording you when you said that and I need it for my records.”

“Shh,” Donghyuck waves a dismissive hand, “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that earlier.”

“You’ve been busy,” Ten teases, “But when you present at fashion week and win, I want full credit for coming up with that name.”

“If anyone should get credit it should be my parents,” Donghyuck snorts, “Good try though.”

“Damn,” Ten deadpans.

Donghyuck laughs and eventually Ten joins him. It’s near two in the morning and he has a flight to catch at eight, but there they are, laughing hysterically. It feels good.

*******

Being back in New York is amazing. Donghyuck takes in a deep breath when he’s dropped off in front of the hotel they’re staying in for the week. This time around, he’s prepared, he knows what’s ahead of him, and more importantly, he’s made it this far. He’s still got something to prove (in fact, this is probably the moment where he has more to prove), but Donghyuck is ready for it.

The hotel is nicer than the apartments they stayed in throughout primary filming, but Donghyuck supposes that they’re the finalists. Project Runway can afford to give them nice accommodations after putting them through the wringer. Like the first time he came to New York, Mark is already inside, although he’s not eating watermelon.

“Hyuck!” he beams, pulling him into a hug.

“Hi Canada,” Donghyuck says back, tightening his grip around Mark.

Mark grins at him and immediately launches into a discussion about his collection and everything else that he’d been doing in Vancouver. They weren’t allowed to contact each other while they were making their collections, so he hasn’t spoken to Mark in what feels like forever. It’s nice being reunited, especially after Donghyuck got so used to seeing him every day. The first couple of days of being home, Donghyuck had instinctively reached out to wake Mark up, only to remember it was just him in the apartment. He’d also found himself buying watermelon, something that had horrified Ten the first time he’d opened the fridge.

“I missed you a lot,” Mark says earnestly, “When I was working I kept looking to my right to talk to you and you weren’t there.”

Donghyuck laughs, “Damn Canada I didn’t know you were that whipped for me.”

Mark pouts at him and Donghyuck sighs, “I missed you too Mark. Seriously.”

That makes Mark beam at him, and for a second, Donghyuck’s breath catches. Oh no. Oh no, no, no.

*******

Unpacking his collection takes a bit longer than he thought it would (probably because Ten helped him pack it up in the first place) but he’s pleased to see that all of his stuff made it safely. He hums as he glances around the room, trying to sneak subtle peeks at both Mark and Lindsey’s collections. Donghyuck knows that the two of them are probably doing the same thing.

Lindsey seems to have gone for a very high fashion collection with a lot of dramatic silhouettes and bold colors. There are a lot of dresses of varying lengths, and at least two of the looks have very intricately crafted pants. The colors are bold enough that it actually kind of hurts Donghyuck’s eyes to see, but overall he finds that he likes her stuff.

Mark is being a whole lot more secretive, and Donghyuck can tell that he’s really nervous about unveiling his looks. From across the workroom, he sends Mark a thumbs up.

“Don’t make us wait all day Canada,” he teases softly, “Let us see the competition.”

Mark smiles and finally starts unzipping his garment bags, the first one opening up to reveal a dark grey jacket. It’s beautiful, and Donghyuck pauses his own unpacking to walk over to Mark’s station.

“Oh shit,” he says, “You really brought your A game.”

“Of course,” Mark grins at him, “If I even want a shot at beating you, I had to bring my best.”

**FINALE ⚬ FULL SUN**

Donghyuck has been vibrating with energy all week, and so it doesn’t come at all as a surprise that he wakes up before his alarm goes off the day of the runway show. He lays in bed for a couple of minutes, on his back and just stares up at the ceiling. It’s overwhelming to have made it this far, and to know that after today, _Project Runway_ will just be another memory. Another chapter, however crazy, of his life. He slides out of bed and quietly makes his way over to the shared kitchen, nearly jumping out of his skin when he sees Mark.

“Hey,” Mark says, “Uh, sorry for scaring you. I just couldn’t sleep you know?”

Donghyuck nods, “Same. How long have you been awake?”

Mark glances at the clock, “Half an hour now?”

“Oh.”

After that, there’s not much to say. Donghyuck takes the time to really get a good look at Mark. His hair is messier than usual for just having woken up, and Donghyuck realizes that Mark has probably been running a hand through his hair out of nervousness. It’s a rather endearing habit of his, and Donghyuck realizes that having been away from Mark for two months has done nothing to calm the fluttering he feels in his stomach.

When he was home, he’d spent a lot of time thinking about Mark. Thinking about how young he looked when he was sleeping, and how cute he was doing something as simple as sneezing. Ten had laughed in his face and called him whipped, which isn’t exactly wrong. They say that distance makes the heart grow fonder, and it’s absolutely true in this case. He still has an absolutely embarrassing crush on Mark.

Watching Mark sip from his glass of water is bringing those feelings back to the surface again though, and Donghyuck hopes that once filming is done, they stay in contact. Romantic feelings aside, Mark is one of his best friends and he can’t imagine never speaking to him again.

Mark sends him a crooked smile, but before Donghyuck can do anything too stupid (like blurting the truth about his feelings), his phone alarm blares and the moment is broken.

“Oh fuck,” Donghyuck jumps, “Sorry, I totally forgot about that, let me just-”

Mark sighs, runs a hand through his hair again, and places his glass in the sink, “It’s fine. We should probably start getting ready anyway. It’s a big day today.”

“Yeah,” Donghyuck repeats, “A big day.”

*******

Here goes nothing.

“Hello!” Donghyuck says into the microphone, desperately clenching and unclenching his toes inside his shoes to mask his anxiety, “My name is Donghyuck, and the collection you’re about to see is called Full Sun. It’s inspired largely by my Korean heritage, and my journey to where I am now as both a person and as a designer. I hope you enjoy it!”

He does his best not to sprint backstage and stands with Tim, watching as his soul is bared for the world to see. Donghyuck tears up a bit, watching his looks coming down the runway, each model giving it her best. He makes mental notes of what he wishes he could change, nit picking the finer details. But overall, he’s happy. His collection, his baby, it’s out there for the world to see, and even if he doesn’t win, Donghyuck is more than happy to have gone out on this collection.

He goes out and walks when the whole collection does, blowing a kiss at Ten, where he’s sitting in the audience, hand in hand with Serina. His parents couldn’t make it, but Donghyuck knows that Ten is definitely illegally facetiming them so that they can watch his collection in real time.

His models crowd him in a group hug, heaping praise on his collection and congratulating him on the show, and Donghyuck smiles.

*******

Mark’s collection takes his breath away. The colors and silhouettes start off muted, almost hidden, before they gradually take center stage and demand that their presence be known. Demand that they be seen as their own identity. It tells the story of him. Of coming out of the shadow of his older brother. He knows that Taeyong must be somewhere in the audience since he’s also showing a collection and wonders how he feels.

It’s a symbolic collection, that’s for sure. Donghyuck watches Mark’s expressions as his looks come down the runway, and sees only contentment. One of the cameras zooms in on Taeyong and Mark doesn’t even look fazed, only smiles faintly at his brother. It’s a good look on him Donghyuck realizes, the utter contentment, the complete confidence in himself.

Mark walks out with his models and bows once he reaches the end of the stage, ever humble. Donghyuck is waiting to tackle him into a hug as soon as Lindsey steps out to present her collection, and the two stand there together, relishing in each other’s company and where they are.

“You did amazing,” Mark murmurs, “So, so amazing.”

“You did too,” Donghyuck says, “Every time you design something, you blow me away.”

Mark tightens his grip on Donghyuck and he closes his eyes, willing the moment to last forever.

**THE FINAL JUDGING ⚬ THE END**

Donghyuck doesn’t think he’s ever been this nervous going into a judging before. But then again, there’s a lot more on the line this time than there ever was before. Serina is next to him, wearing his finale piece, a loud, golden dress meant to emulate the sun, that took Donghyuck the better part of a week and a half to construct. He’s really proud of it, and as much as he loves each piece of his collection, this dress is definitely his baby.

Serina squeezes his hand reassuringly, and Donghyuck smiles up at her. They’ve been through a lot together, his model and him. But this is the end. And he either walks off of the runway as the winner, or one of the runner ups.

As expected, the judges absolutely rip into all of their collections, giving honest feedback on each look. Donghyuck is told that his sixth look was only meh (he kind of sees their point, but he disagrees with Nina’s comment that it looks costumey), but gets all around praise for his finale piece.

“It’s really just a beautiful garment,” Heidi tells him, “I want to rip it off her body and wear it.”

“Contact me after the show and we can work something out,” Donghyuck says, half joking.

Heidi laughs, “I’ll take you up on that. Be ready.”

Donghyuck smiles and when they move on to Mark, crosses his fingers behind his back.

*******

“Mark,” Heidi says, and even before she finishes her sentence, Donghyuck knows, “Congratulations. You are the winner of _Project Runway_ Season 25.”

Donghyuck’s body does a weird thing where he feels both absolute elation for Mark’s victory, that he’s proven himself to be more than just his brother, and also soul crushing defeat at his own loss. He wills himself not to cry, especially when Mark’s first reaction upon hearing the news is to pull him into a tight hug.

“Congratulations Canada,” he murmurs, “You deserve this.”

“You did too,” Mark whispers, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Donghyuck says back, eyes just a little bit watery, “Seriously.”

“Donghyuck,” Heidi says when they pull apart, “I’m sorry, that means you’re out.”

Donghyuck nods, accepts the kiss goodbye from Heidi, and squeezes Mark’s hand in congratulations one more time before walking off stage, defeat seeping into his bones. When he makes his way to the backstage waiting room, he throws himself into Ten’s open arms and cries. Ten catches him, soothes him with gentle words and a hand running through his hair.

“I’m really proud of you,” Ten whispers, “You did good.”

Donghyuck angles his head so that the camera can’t catch the ugly face he makes as he continues to cry, sniffling into Ten’s expensive jacket. He knows the only reason Ten isn’t yelling at him about it is because he feels bad. He didn’t win. After all of the effort he put into his collection, after he bared his soul, nothing. It wasn’t enough. And it really, really fucking hurts.

*******

After filming has wrapped up, Donghyuck is allowed to go back to the hotel and pack his stuff back up in preparation to return to Los Angeles. He’d said goodbye to Lindsey already since she only had to go back to New Jersey, and not across the country. A knock on his door startles him, and Donghyuck drops one of his shirts back on the bed before going over to open it. It’s Mark.

“Hey Canada,” Donghyuck says, “What brings you to my room? I thought your flight home was soon.”

“Hey. Uh, it is, but I realized I need to ask you something first,” Mark says, suddenly nervous, “Can I uh, can I get your phone number?”

“Mark Lee,” Donghyuck says, a hint of a smile on his face, “Are you hitting on me? Like, officially?”

Mark sputters unattractively, “Y-yeah? Sorry I’m not trying to be creepy but I’ve never really needed your number before and I want to keep in contact with you now that the show is over, but I don’t know how and so this was the best thing I could come up with, and I thought we were on the same page about this but we never actually spoke about it and I’m so sorry I’ll just go now-”

“Mark,” Donghyuck cuts him off, “Come here. Breathe.”

He watches Mark take a comically huge breath before nodding jerkily, stepping closer.

“Sorry,” he repeats, “I’m nervous. You make me nervous. But in a really good way.”

“I promise I don’t bite,” Donghyuck says, allowing his smile to widen, “Unless you want me to.”

Mark chokes and Donghyuck laughs, “I’m just messing with you. I’ll give you my number alright? Text me when you get the chance, and don’t forget me when you’re famous, okay Canada?”

Letting out a laugh of his own, Mark pulls him in for a hug and Donghyuck smiles into his neck. As nice as winning _Project Runway_ would have been, Donghyuck thinks that his friendship (and maybe, hopefully, more?) with Mark might be even better.

(God. He can’t believe he’s such a sap. Oh well. That’s what Mark’s done to him.)

**\+ BONUS SCENE ⚬ THE REUNION**

“Honestly,” Tim says, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen the judges have such a hard time picking a winner. It was very close you two.”

Donghyuck smiles, the reassurance acting like a balm over the still slightly festering wound. He doesn’t begrudge Mark his victory. Honestly. It was a good collection. And it’s nice being surrounded by all of his _Project Runway_ friends again. Nice seeing Mark again. His hair is a light shade of brown now, pushed back off his forehead in a way that makes him look pretty hot.

“I loved both of you guys’ collections,” Michelle chimes in, “Donghyuck, what you did with those pleats for your finale piece? So amazing.”

“Thank you,” Donghyuck says graciously, “I gave it my all, but I’m really proud of Mark for winning. He deserved it.”

Mark smiles softly at him and squeezes his thigh, “He was tough competition. I couldn’t have asked for a better competitor.”

“How lovely,” Tim says with a smile, “I’m sure all of you have seen the show by now, and a lot of our fans picked up on the nickname that Donghyuck gave Mark. We have a little video here, so let’s turn our attention to the screen and watch.”

The video starts, and much to Donghyuck’s embarrassment, it’s a highlight reel of all the times he called Mark “Canada”, from the very first episode on the Manhattan roof, all the way to their final moments together on the runway. The whole thing is probably three minutes long, and he just knows that it’s only that short because the editing team cut a lot of clips out. The other designers laugh and when the video ends, Donghyuck buries his face in his hands.

“Do you want to explain the nickname Donghyuck?” Tim asks.

“One of the first things Mark told me when we met was that he was from Vancouver, Canada,” Donghyuck explains, “Like it was a personality trait or something. I give people I’m close with a nickname and Mark was one of the first people I really connected with, so he became “Canada.”

“And how do you feel about it Mark?”

Mark laughs, “If there’s one thing I learned about Hyuck, it’s that he doesn’t take no for an answer. I don’t mind being called “Canada.” Although there was a period of time where he called me that so much I thought he’d forgotten my actual name.”

There’s a lot more laughs and reminiscing, and another highlight reel, although this time it’s of all the times Josh ran around screeching about his scissors. Near the end of filming, Tim turns the attention back to Donghyuck and Mark.

“I think this is a _Project Runway_ first,” Tim smiles, “You know, in the entire history of the show I don’t think we’ve ever had romance blossom between two of our designers. But I’m very glad to be able to announce that since filming ended, Donghyuck and Mark, you two have been dating.”

Donghyuck smiles as the other designers clap for them and nods, “Yeah. We’ve been dating for a couple months now and it’s been really good.”

“So how did this happen?”

Mark groans next to him and Donghyuck laughs, “Mark’s groaning because he’s heard me tell this story a million times and he says it always embarrasses him. But right after the finale, he asked for my number like some kind of modern day Romeo. Then, after we went home we started texting nonstop, video calling almost every day to the point that I kept getting distracted at work by him. Eventually, Mark surprised me in LA by showing up to my studio one day and he took me on a date. Showed me around my own city, and somehow managed to get lost seven different times. It was sweet though.”

“I only got lost because you’re terrible at directions,” Mark objects, “Seriously. I’d asked him what he’d want to do and he described the whole date to me with directions, but they were all really off.”

“Details,” Donghyuck waves him off with a hand, “But the date was really sweet and I really like him, so we just kept going on them.”

“And it isn’t too hard with the distance?” Tim asks, “I know Los Angeles and Vancouver aren’t the closest of cities.”

“Nah, we make it work,” Mark says, turning to grin at him.

Donghyuck can feel an equally stupid smile growing on his own face as he says, “Yeah. We make it work.”

**Author's Note:**

> \- I really don't know anything about fashion except for the things I've learned from watching Project Runway. I watched this show religiously as a kid.  
> \- Some of the challenges are based on actual PR challenges while others I took a bit of creative liberty with.  
> \- The "Rainway" was a real episode (S13E8), and both Mark and DH's outfits were inspired by the actual winning outfits of that challenge. I am in love with the dress Sean (Mark) made and the way it transformed in the rain.  
> \- Is it really one of my fics if Mark and Taeyong aren't related somehow?
> 
> Thank you for reading!


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